The Craiova Christmas market, declared the most beautiful in Europe. Lia Olguța Vasilescu: “We will celebrate with fireworks!”
The Craiova Christmas Fair won first place in the competition The Most Beautiful Christmas Fairs in Europe 2025-2026. “We received 142,687 votes from all over the world, more than 56,000 votes ahead of second place,” announced the mayor Lia Olguța Vasilescu. The distinction was awarded by European Best Destinations, the most visited European tourism platform and official partner of the European Commission for tourism.
Craiova won 1st place in the European Christmas Markets competition. PHOTO: Facebook
“Craiova won the 1st place in the European Christmas Markets competition! We received 142,687 votes from all over the world, more than 56,000 votes ahead of the 2nd place. Of the total votes, more than 55 percent came from outside Romania, mainly from the USA, Great Britain, France, Belgium, Germany and Spain. In each of these countries, Craiova ranks either in the 1st place or in the top 3. We thank all the visitors and especially those who voted for us! Today, at 18.30, at the sleigh, we will celebrate with fireworks!”, wrote Lia Olguța Vasilescu on Facebook.
Craiova was the most voted Christmas destination since the competition was established, with the voting page being shared over 600,000 times on social networks. A total of 803,258 votes were cast from 179 countries after a week of online voting, according to the organization's official statement.
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The Christmas market in Craiova. PHOTO: Facebook/Olguța Vasilescu
20 European cities signed up, including destinations with a tradition of organizing Christmas markets, such as Paris, Vienna, Bruges, Prague, Zurich, Cologne, Frankfurt, Riga or Asti-Govone.
After two consecutive years in second place, the Craiova Christmas Fair receives this year the title of “Best European Christmas Market 2026”.
In recent months, prestigious international publications such as Bild and Focus (Germany), Express (UK), Forbes International, El Economista (Spain) or Euronews have written about the Fair in Craiova.
Mayor Lia Olguța Vasilescu emphasized the importance of this international recognition, which puts Craiova on the map of winter destinations in Europe.
